Abstract
Original language | English |
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Article number | 1587 |
Number of pages | 27 |
Journal | Water |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 11 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 31 May 2024 |
Funding
The authors are thankful for the financial support of the Scottish Government under the Climate Justice Fund Water Futures Program (research grant HN-CJF-03), awarded to the University of Strathclyde (Prof. R.M. Kalin PI). We also gratefully acknowledge the funding by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (CSC) awarded to Limbikani Chitsundi Banda, the principal researcher. Finally, we acknowledge the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) research grant awarded to Limbikani Chitsundi Banda (Prof R.M. Kalin Technical Advisor) under the AFRA Regional Project grant (RAF7021). We acknowledge the administrative support by the Malawi Government through the Ministry of Water and Sanitation and the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department of the University of Strathclyde. The overarching aim of this work was to establish a conceptualisation of the groundwater in the Lake Malawi basin (LMB) aquifer systems, focusing on isotope hydrology and hydrogeochemical baseline characterisation, spatial-seasonal effects on groundwater mineral signatures, geochemical controls on groundwater quality and evolution, groundwater-resource provenance, and hydrogeological system conceptualisation. Specifically, this study addressed the following research questions: (a) What are the background isotope hydrology and hydrochemical signatures of groundwater in the LMB? (b) How are the LMB aquifer systems recharged, and what are the isotope hydrology and hydrochemical signatures of distinct recharge inputs? (c) What are the geospatial and seasonal effects on groundwater quality and mineralisation? (d) What are the key geochemical controls on groundwater quality and evolution? and (e) How do isotope hydrology, hydrogeochemical and geospatial characteristics help refine the conceptualisation of the LMB aquifer systems? This study is consistent with the IWRM principles and SDG 6 objectives, with the potential to underpin sustainable groundwater resource management in Malawi and the wider region. This study aligns with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Technical Cooperation (TC) project objectives (RAF7021 regional project) for sustainable water management and supports transboundary water management initiatives under the 2004 ZAMCOM agreement and was supported by the Scottish Government\u2019s Climate Justice Fund Water Futures Programme (CJF).
Keywords
- isotope tracers
- hydrogeochemistry
- sustainable development goal 6 (SDG 6)
- geochemical modelling
- groundwater sustainability